Representation of Age - "White Girl"

Representation of Age
White Girl


In this clip of "White Girl", the representation of age focusses mainly on a young girl, through the use of sound, editing, camera shots and mis-en-scene.


The program starts with an establishing shot, introducing the setting and the young girl. The sun is shining, which emphasises her care-free outlook on life and innocence throughout the show. She is riding her bike towards the camera which the audience can associate as a childhood activity, this therefore reinforces her youth. As the clip continues, the camera becomes shaky, presenting the movement of her bike, this emphasises the young girl's actions. Additionally, the audience can see extreme close ups as the camera focusses  on various parts of the bike whilst she is riding, for example, the tassels which represent childhood and also, her trainers which has connotations of youth. There are also many close-up shots of the young girl, to display her emotions, suggesting she is fragile and is not strong enough to cope on her own. Later on, the girl looks up at her mother when she arrives at the flat, this presents her youth as she is obeying her mother, denoting that she has the power. When at the flat, the camera generally looks in at the events occurring, the audience are aware of this due to the visible window frame, this could suggest that it could be too dangerous in the flat, resulting in the audience sympathising with the family, hoping they can escape.


This clip also uses mis-en-scène to represent age. The use of props portrays this element, for example, the young boy in the clip is carrying an xbox which establishes his youth, suggesting his innocence. The clip appears to focus on a young girl who seems around 13 years old, at the start, she is riding a bike, which conveys an element of youth and playfulness, particularly as a man says to her, she is "too big for it". This emphasises she is too old for the bike with tassels on, and she perhaps knows this, however implying that she is trying to cling onto her childhood innocence. Additionally, this girly bike could display the family's lack of wealth as they may not be able to afford a new bike for her. The young girl's clothing also portrays an element of childhood, she is wearing trainers which depicts her innocence and carless attitude towards fashion. When the young girl arrives at the flat, her mother throws a pillow/duvet out of the window, and the audience can see lots of feathers land around where the young child is standing. The white colour and purity of the feathers conveying innocence and youth of the girl is juxtaposed against the dirty, dingy flat. Throughout the clip, the child is referred to as "good girl", denoting her innocence and inferiority to adults, which represents her young age. Towards the end of the clip, the audience can see the young girl hugging the the pet dog, which could be resembling a teddy bear, often connoted with youthfulness and innocnece. Also, this could make the audience feel sympathy towards the child as she may not have anybody else to hug and rely on. The girl leave her bike behind when they leave the flat, which could be symbolising her growing up into her teen years, consequently leaving her childhood behind. When the van drives away, the young girl looks out of the back window into the past, conversely, her mother is looking into the front window, smiling, displaying her forgetting her past and looking into the future.


Editing also plays a role in representing age throughout this "White Girl" clip. At the beginning, the sun is shining on the young girl riding her bike, which displays her innocnet, care-free attitude. However, soon after, the audience is shocked to discover she is dealing drugs, which contradicts her innocence. There are some jump cuts when handing over the drugs, and the music also continues throughout this scene, emphasising that the girl thinks this is the normal way to behave and there is nothing wrong with it. There is a lot of quick cuts when the girl is on her bike, displaying her trainers and showing the speed of the bike, portraying her youth.


Finally, the sound used when the young girl is riding her bike is a happy, cheerful piece of music, depicting her youth and innocence. This music is used throughout the clip, constantly reminding the audience of the representation of age.